Eyes wide, body pulling wildly and uselessly against the straps, my mind raced back over that last day, the last day I remembered, hours flashing through my brain in a single second as I went back to before I had gone to bed that night, before I had finished writing my history paper, before the argument with Alex, back and back to the beginning of the morning… The alarm clock had gone off at 7:00 a.m., a pounding bass and a wild guitar blasting out of the iPod dock. I reached out sleepily and felt for the off switch. Hit it and sank back into a half doze. Then, exactly ten minutes later by the digital numbers on the clock, my mother’s voice reached me from the bottom of the stairs.

“Charlie! It’s seven o’clock! Time to get ready for school!”

I groaned and rolled over, swinging my feet to the floor, sitting up on the edge of the mattress before I’d even opened my eyes. When I could, I stood up. I staggered out of my room and directly into the bathroom next door.

I assembled myself. Showered the bod. Brushed the teeth. Shaved the beard, which still sprouted only in patches on my cheeks, chin, and neck. Viewed the finished product in the mirror. Not bad. Tall enough-edging up toward six feet. Slim but with good shoulders, and a lot of muscle def from all my workouts. The face? I don’t know. Presentable, I guess. Lean, serious, with a mop of brown hair spilling into it. Brown eyes. I’m good with the eyes. I try to keep them honest, you know. I try to make it so they’re not afraid to look straight at anyone.

I went back to my room to get dressed. But before I started, I tore off the page of my desk calendar. It was a Word of the Day calendar, and I liked to read the new word and memorize it while I put my clothes on.